They will pay for what they have done!
by SW7KMETPA
Summary: AU. The Dawnguard almost wiped out the Volkihar clan, but for Harkon and Lina, his wife. Now Harkon and Lina have waged war on the Dawnguard and Skyrim and will take each and every city and the lives of every person in them.
1. Chapter 1

**Hey hey hey hey!  
So this one is a little different than I usually write and at the moment it'll be a one-shot thing, but if you guys want me to carry it on, I will, just let me know. I own nothing, it's all Bethesda's work. So here we go. :)**

Seeing the bridge from the boat, I immediately knew that something was wrong, that something had happened while I was away. I could feel the anxiety build within me as we got closer, not knowing what I would find on the island. I had only been away for a mere few hours visiting my old friend Sybille in Solitude.

I stepped off the boat onto dry land to find the air was thick with the aftermath of a battle and, as I walked across the thick bridge, I found bodies scattered and blood splattered everywhere. Even the gate guard had fought to his last breath and ended up with a sword through his gullet.

I pushed against the gate, using more strength than I expected would need, suddenly feeling even guiltier for forcing this on our watchman every night. Seeing the main hall brought back memories I hadn't thought of in a century. It was a massacre. Both sides clearly had many losses, Volkihar and Dawnguard alike. Vingalmo slumped in the corner, his head barely recognisable, Salonie Caelia's head laying on her master and mentor's lap showing that she had been killed after finding him dead. Such a sweet romance if ever there was one. Fura lying in a pool of her own blood on the carpet in the centre of the room. Orthjolf's body lying in a position I had never thought possible under the head table, his head hanging at an ungodly angle, Stalf lying a mere 2 feet away, clearly having been killed saving his master, mentor and friend.

My beloved Death Hounds, CuSith and Garmr each lying on the ground, members of the Dawnguard sprawled around them. I knew that they had done us proud that day, dying for the same cause as everyone else in the room. Save the castle from the invaders.

I bent down by Hestla, our Blacksmith and a woman who had been a good friend of mine since I had found her in the Companions and changed her to our 'cause'. I pressed my hand to her forehead and silently prayed to Molag Bal, our maker and lord, to make sure she made it to his plain. I looked around the room to find that almost every member of our court had been killed in that very room, the last of the Dawnguard, that I could see anyway, dying in the alcove under the stairs by the entrance.

I moved over to the dying Dawnguard, bending down beside her, seeing the blatant fear on her face as I gripped her chin, forcing her to look directly at me as I asked;

"Harkon. Where is he?" I asked, tightening my grip on her face. I felt her shake a little before I realised that she had begun laughing before she spoke.

"Soon, the beast will be dead and Skyrim will be free…" and before I could say another word, she became limp in my grasp and died before my eyes, slumping to the ground as I released my grip on her. Of course that was their aim. That's the only reason they would come to the castle.

Tapping into the Vampiric skills that I hadn't needed to use in years, I cast a spell, searching for life in the castle, finding only 1. Dawnguard. Clearly in the cathedral. I cast another spell to locate any vampires still alive in the castle, finding the remnants of the 'lives' of each of the vampires in the main hall, but also the strong power that I had become used to over years of living in the castle. Harkon.

Harkon was in the cathedral with some human. I made my way to the dingy room, listening in at the door to find that the person my husband was teasing was the 'legendary Dragonborn' that had been plaguing Skyrim for the recent years. I heard a halt in Harkons voice and I knew that he now knew I was here, though clearly the 'all powerful' Dragonborn didn't.

Releasing my blade from my back that I had taken with me as a precaution due to the harsh nature of Skyrims wilds, though I still don't know why Harkon had insisted I took it as I would have been in the wilds of Skyrim for minutes at a time between the dock and Solitudes gates, I opened the door silently, and slipped through the tiniest gap into the cathedral showing a small smile and flashing my fangs at my husband as he spoke to the mortal as I thrust my blade through her armor and impaled the Dragonborn on my sword, never breaking eye contact with the Vampire Lord at the other side of the room.

Pulling my blade back, I tore my gaze from my husband to watch the body slump to the floor, grinning as I pulled a piece of cloth from my pocket and wiped away the blood from the blade and threw the cloth at the dead Dragonborn.

"Not so 'all powerful' after all." I said, the disgust clear in my voice. I felt a hand on my shoulder and looked up into the eyes of my husband who had made his way over as I had spoken, silent as always.

We stayed locked in one another's gaze for what seemed like an age, though it was probably only seconds to anyone else.

"How many have we lost?" Harkon asked, breaking the sweet silence, and I was thrown back to the scene in the main hall as I went to answer the question.

"All dead." I said, trying to keep the sentiment out of my voice, though it was difficult since we both had lost friends in the battle. Harkon audibly sighed as he manoeuvred around me and out of the door, pushing it open a little more so I could follow.

We walked down the few steps by the hall, looking around the room. I counted the dead. 30 members of both our clan and the Dawnguard all dead in this one room, though including the Dragonborn it would be 31. I watched as my husband weaved in and out of the bodies, clearly searching.

"She isn't here. At least, not in this room. I know not where she may be now, though be sure that she was not killed in the battle." I said, knowing it would most likely not ease his conscience as he continued to search for his daughter.

"She may not be here, but she is still with them. Dawnguard filth. Traitor to her own kind. We must find her. I must make sure she is uninjured." He turned back to me, head held high as he broke. "Lina. Gather all the vampires you can muster." I lifted my hand to ask though he knew my question as usual as he continued, waving his hand a little. "Yes, yes, even the little assassin girl, she will be an advantageous ally in what is to come." I dropped my hand and made my way over to him, wrapping my arms around his waist, feeling him clearly relax in my grasp.

"They will pay for what they have done here, Lina, you can be sure of that. They will know what it means to 'pay with blood'. Killing my entire clan was a big mistake and, with the help of the Dragonborn, we have gained everything we need to defeat the Dawnguard, and claim Skyrim as our own." He turned in my arms and looked into my eyes again, smiling a little as he spoke. "We are going to war. With the Dawnguard and with Skyrim. City by city, we will conquer this feeble country, and you will live as queen!"

**So there we go. I had fun writing this, to be honest.  
I probably won't be writing more of it, at least not yet anyway. If you guys have any ideas for it, let me know.  
**


	2. Chapter 2

**Okay. So, this came into my head, and I was intending to have Lina be the ultimate evil kind of leader by Harkon's side, and I hope that she will co-operate with this idea soon, this was not as... feral and violent as I had hoped she would be, but I hope to change that in the coming chapters. :)**

The vampires I had encountered in my time traversing Skyrim were not difficult to find again. Each had promised me their allegiance, and, through me, the Volkihar clan. I went to Solitude first, quickly and smoothly dodging the residents of the city easily, though the call of their blood was almost too difficult to avoid. I made it to the Blue Palace only seconds after I had slipped through the large doors of the city, having used my newly found power of invisibility to assure none of the people in the city knew I was there, running through the streets faster than usual.

Sybille Stentor was the only member of court not in her chambers when I entered the Palace, and of course the other members of court were deep asleep, though it was barely midnight. Sybille stood by the throne, clearly deep in thought, though she knew I was there. I could tell and I waited impatiently by the stairs. After a few moments, she turned to me, her eyes blazing almost blood red.

I stepped forward. "The Volkihar have been attacked, Sybille. Every one of the Volkihar court. Dead. We have what we need to finally stop the Dawnguard and rule Skyrim. Will you join us?" I said, as quietly as I could without taking away the deeply rooted fury burning through me.

Sybille simply grinned, her sharp incisors growing as she did so and her eyes shone bright. "I will join you sister." She tipped her head back, lifting her hands by her sides, and I watched as the powerful vampire's glamour fell and the youthful woman stepped forward, clad in the armour she had kept hidden for nearly 20 years in court. "It feels good to once again embrace my gift."

I smiled at her, glad that my old friend would join us in our fight. "Thank you. We will convene at Volkihar Keep. I must now leave to gather the rest of our… friends." My grin grew, showing her my own teeth as I turned and left the Palace, once again using invisibility to run through the city and leave via the gates.

Movarth's Lair. I had not ventured to the cave in a number of years. I entered the hole in the rock, unaccustomed to conditions such as these. Movarth himself kept only a small number of vampires under his watch, but a relatively large selection of humans to feed from, having given up attempting to take Morthal.

I walked through the corridors of the cave, barely even taking notice of the pitiful company Movarth seemed to have gained. I strode into the main chamber, finding Movarth sat in his feeble throne, as per usual, with Alva and Sera, the twins, stood at his sides, Laelette, Alva's lackey stood by her 'master's' side, faithfully, almost like a dog. I stood tall, and addressed the leader of this group directly.

"Movarth Piquine." I said, taking a step forward, felling the uneven ground below my boots. "I come here with news. The Volkihar clan has been attacked. Most of the court, destroyed. Harkon has called for all vampires under his command to convene at Volkihar Keep." I tipped slightly forward, smiling a little, noticing the hostility brewing within the 4 vampires in the room. "At the earliest convenience, of course." I stood again, tall, knowing that my place at Volkihar Keep and my connection to Harkon himself frightened them.

Movarth stood from his chair, standing proud on the elevated dirt. "You have our support." He bowed. I nodded in return and turned from him, striding quickly through the corridors, eager to leave.

Dawnstar, a small town. Cold and not very friendly at all, not that that even mattered at all. I found the Black Door and entered the Sanctuary easily, remembering a time when the place had been my home. I steeled myself and walked down the stairs, finding the very person I was looking for standing in a doorway, hands on her barely there hips. I grinned at the little girl, stepping forward. She moved out of my way slowly, allowing me entrance to the open area. I looked to my right, seeing a familiar face. The Night Mother, of course. I heard 5 heartbeats in the sanctuary and looking sceptically at Babette. She shrugged at me and sat by a small table.

"I know you aren't here for a contract. You don't need us for that. Where is your master? Still at the castle, sending you to do the dirty work?" The young girl taunted. I turned to her quickly, furrowing my brow a little.

"Watch your words, little child. Wouldn't want you to end up like one of your precious targets now would we?" I responded, biting down now tongue as I finished, showing her my teeth. She sat back in the chair and I linked my hands over my belly as I spoke. "Harkon has called for all vampires under his command to conve…" I was stopped as she began to talk, I raised my eyebrows at the girl, not accustomed to the treatment I was receiving, but she carrying on regardless.

"But I am not under his command am I? In fact, the Volkihar leader detests me and my… youth." She said the last word with such distain. I took a deep breath, though I did not need it at all and looked at her pointedly, knowing that she knew I was not in the mood to 'mess around'. "Very well. Proceed."

"Thank you ever so kindly." I said, noting the response as she regarded my sarcasm. "Harkon may not agree with your existence, but he values your… methods, and, apparently, you would be a valuable asset to the current cause. Our court has almost been eradicated, but for myself and Harkon, and we feel, as a response, that it is time to take the fight back to the Dawnguard, and eventually rule Skyrim. Perhaps even Tamriel. Should you decide you would join us, we are convening at Volkihar Keep as soon as possible." I nodded at the young vampire girl and turned, leaving the girl sat in her chair and the Dark Brotherhood Sanctuary, knowing that I may, very well, never see it again.

Travelling south was tediously boring, though I made good time and arrived at Half- Moon Mill merely 2 days after being in Dawnstar, stopping to feed, quite ravenously, on two bandits travelling west. I revelled in the strength the feed gave me and ran even faster towards the mill, finding Hert stood outside waiting for me as I arrived, not looking pleased at all. Stopping barely 3 feet away from her, I stood, as I had done with the others, hands knotted over my belly, legs together, head held high.

"Hert. As a former Volkihar vampire yourself, you knew this day was bound to arrive sooner or later. Lord Harkon requires your presence at the Keep to attend to a VERY pressing matter." The woman simply nodded and turned from me, clearly having agreed to go to Volkihar Keep, but oh so very obviously making it clear that she was to leave later. I blinked at the door she had shut, shrugged and turned heading South East, reaching Bloodlet Throne barely hours later.

I made my way through the Stone building, finding Vighar, an older vampire than myself, sat, quietly drinking from one of his latest victims. I licked my lips and he offered me something to drink. I politely declined, deciding not to anger the vampire, knowing about his outbursts. He shrugged and waved.

"Yes, yes, I will join your plight. I knew you would come to me eventually and, this is the only reason you would do so by yourself, no?" I nodded. "As I thought. I shall join you at Volkihar Keep as soon as I am finished with this meal. Now… Get out." He said, digging back in to his meal. I nodded and turned away from the vampire, almost running back through the hallways, enjoying the fear that emanated from the older vampires lackeys as they recognised me. I left the building and was back at the Keep in another 3 days, back before sunrise. I was happy to find that all but Vighar were sat in the main hall, enjoying a feed on what was clearly a new set of cattle for us to enjoy, though Harkon, as he sat in his throne, observed each and every one of them with scrutiny, his eyes lingering on the 'young' assassin as his brow furrowed.

I walked through the room, taking my place at the head table. A place I had sat in countless time. I noticed the lackey, Laelette, watch my movements with utter surprise, clearly not knowing who I was in this clan. I bared my teeth to her and she went back to her meal quickly. I smiled and turned to Harkon who had watched the interactions in amusement.

"You may have to assert your dominance again dear." He said, quietly, so that the others could not hear. I grinned at the Vampire Lord and leaned up so that my lips were almost touching the tip of his ear. He shivered. I grinned at the movement.

"I shouldn't have to. These 'warriors' each know my name. That… girl, will not last long in this Keep if she continues to show me such disrespect." I hissed into his ear, smelling the desire flare in him. I grinned and stood, leaving the room via the stairs to the side, furious that the girl had shown such obvious disrespect in front of everybody. Harkon was right. She will be taught who's in charge around here.

**Mkay, there we go. So. I know that, in the game, the majority of these vampires die, but I thought it would be good to involve them in this, so yeah and I introduced Sera, Alva's twin, and another of my OC's. I may or may not have plans for her. :)**

**Hahaha.**


	3. Chapter 3

**Alrighty then. So. Not long before the vampires go on the rampage through Skyrim and I thought I'd put this in to slowly bring in Lina's feral side. :) Enjoy.**

The vampires I had collected all convened at the Keep in a matter of days, much to the impatient Harkon's displeasure. He paced every night, resting only a few hours a day, furiously muttering to himself as he paced.

Movarth and his lackeys became impatient also, sitting in the Keep all day and all night, waiting for the last member to arrive. Vighar was almost always the last to arrive to a meeting of sorts and, when he did arrive at the castle, each and every vampire was sat in the main hall, feasting ravenously on the stores of the cattle that had been amassed from the dead Dawnguard. The older vampire entered, descended the steps, looking every bit as hungry as the others as he ripped Laelette from her meal and threw her against the nearby wall before digging in to the raw meat lying on the table. I grinned at the display as Laelette crouched and growled at Vighar.

Vighar turned to see the young woman, flashing a feral grin at her and laughing as she visibly cowered before him before returning to his meal. Laelette simply turned and joined Alva by her meal. As soon as everyone had finally taken a seat at one of the tables, Harkon stood from his chair, commanding the attention of the room, simply from the power that emanated from his person. The vampires in the room fell silent as they looked to him, awaiting the speech they knew was coming. I sat back to watch the small group of vampires', noting emotions, responses, aura.

I saw the difference in the vampires immediately. Where Movarth took the brief glances from both Alva and Sera every few seconds with relish, Babette watched every corner of the room like a sabre cat would its prey.

Sybille sat at the far end of one of the tables, quietly observing the speech, obviously cautious of the vampires around her, clearly not used to being around such feral beasts, though she shared their love of bloodshed and revelled in the idea of taking Skyrim for our own. Her face showed a range of emotions as I observed her. Anger. Passion. Glee. Even a brief hint of fear, but just as I scrunched up my eyes at it, she hid it at the deep recesses of her mind and her eyes shone as she met my gaze. Her aura was strong and red. A strong colour, though I knew that Sybille had neglected her vampiric powers for a number of years.

Movarth sat up straight, eyes glued on Harkon as he spoke, confident that he was safe from the attacks of the others, oblivious to the glances of his two chief advisors, Alva and Sera. His face betrayed nothing but the determination in his oddly dull eyes. The fire that raged in his eyes was enough to show that he had wanted this for a long time and was willing to do anything to see it done. I admired that spirit, thinking that he would be a good warrior in the coming war.

Alva sat, vaguely paying attention to the speech at all, focusing more on her meal than Harkon, though glancing up to her master every few seconds as though making sure he had not abandoned her yet. I scrunched my face in disgust at the idea that she was afraid to lose Movarths presence. She had not been a vampire long I noticed as she had not yet learned to control her emotions well, as I thought Movarth would have enforced with a steel hand in his feeble court. She showed fear, happiness when she saw her master was still there, disappointment, anger, sadness and even the sense that she had simply given up, which confused me greatly. I shook my head at the girl and moved on. The aura she emitted was weak, and I regretted seeing her face.

Babette was sat, a smug grin plastered on her child-like face as she lazily sat in the chair, as though she had heard this speech before. Her incisors were visible over her lips and her eyes were a permanent orange. Barely 300 years old, she had been an assassin for much of her vampire life and I had known her from my own days in the Brotherhood, so I knew that under the innocent exterior, was a brutal, merciless and sadistic killer and I admired the girl for it, even if Harkon didn't agree with me.

Laelette stood patiently awaiting some kind of order from her mistress, Alva, or her mistress' master, not listening to the speech Harkon was giving. Her aura was even weaker than Alva's and I knew, just by looking at her that would not last very long in the upcoming war. No, not long at all.

Hert, ever loyal, listened intently to the speech at hand, clearly making notes in her mind as she listened. Even though the Dark Brotherhood had killed her husband, Hern, she did not seem to be showing any kind of anger towards the vampire child, in fact, she didn't seem to emit many emotions outside of determination and fierce passion, clearly for the cause.

Vighar was the most difficult to read, and always had been, as he had had almost as long as I had to school his features and steel his mind, shielding it from powers such as mine, though I never used the full brunt of my force on anyone. It would drive them insane in an instant. Vighar, though listening to speech and having been a devout Volkihar vampire for many years, let his guard down for only a moment and I saw the brief glimpses of anger, towards the Dawnguard, and disappointment, that we had not already taken Skyrim.

Sera was watching Harkon with an obvious passion in her eyes, quick glances to her master, like her sister. This girl needed to learn who was taken and who was not. She caught my glance and I knew my eyes had flared at her looks at my husband. She merely flashed a smile at me, at which I saw red and felt my incisors grow rapidly as I stood from my chair by Harkon's side. My husband stopped talking and looked to me, seeing my face and visibly looking worried, though I knew it was not for me, but for my next victim.

I moved around the table slowly, seeing Sera stand from her seat, walking around the side of her table. We met in the centre of the room, each and every pair of eyes watching us intently. I could feel the weak heartbeat and I could sense her feeble strength in her bones. I growled at the girl, seeing the flinch come from her as she almost stepped backwards, away from me.

I laughed at her. "You think you can come into MY KEEP! And take what is mine by right!?" I screamed into the silent hall, seeing the fear seep into her features as she actually took a step backwards. "Listen here girl. You may think you have a chance at surviving this war. But listen to me closely when I say. If I EVER see you looking at MY HUSBAND that way again. I will tear you limb from limb. DO YOU UNDERSTAND ME!?" I stepped forward as I spoke, ending up with my face centimetres from hers, the fear almost consuming her completely. She nodded slightly and I bared my teeth at her, reaching forward.

I grasped her neck, lifting the feeble child from the ground easily as I felt my anger growing towards this girl. "I would have thought you would not give in so easily. Is this who you are!? A coward? If so, you do not belong in the Keep, girl." I lifted my hand slightly and then slammed her into the floor, seeing the impact shatter the floorboards. I crouched down to her level and grasped a handful of her brunette hair, lifting her now bloody head to look at me. I used my power, my anger getting the better of me, and delved into her mind, looking deeply into her eyes. To everyone else, it would simply look like my eyes had changed colour to dark purple and I was staring her down, but I walked among her thoughts, destroying the urns that held her fear and anxiety at the deep corners of her mind before pulling back out of her.

Dropping the girl on the floor again, I turned away and, looking to my husband, I saw pride in his eyes as he grinned ferally at me. I returned the grin and, glancing over my shoulder, left the main hall, seeking solace in the cathedral.

**Well.. chapter 3 (?) up and done. If there's anything you'd like to see. Opinions, moments, etc. Let me know and I'll include them in the next chapter. :)**


	4. Chapter 4

**So here's the next addition to this little story. Not quite how I had hoped this would go, but hey ho, it should get better. :)**

* * *

Over the next couple of nights, while we prepared for the imminent war on Skyrim, a couple of changes became evident in the members of our little group.

First of all, Alva and Laelette had taken to spending all of their time talking quietly in the coffin room in the lowest level of the Castle, or violently attacking the dummies in the training room, reminding me slightly of Fura.

Sera, however, had taken a completely different route and, due to my meddling in her mind, had over the past two nights, loudly declared everything that went through her mind, and instigating a number of fights very quickly. This was mildly worrying, but incredibly amusing when she inevitably came to me to express her views, looked me in the eyes, and cowering visibly in the centre of a corridor, leaving me to laugh and stroll past her as her entire body shook and she fell against the wall beside her. Sometimes I relished in using my powers on people.

The others were their usual selves. It was only when a fight broke out that anyone had any fun, or when there was food readily available. Movarth had formed a fast friendship with Vighar, which was surprising, but I left them to it. Babette had kept her habitual tendencies of making small threats to both the others, and the cattle down in the dungeons.

On the third day after I had rounded up the vampires we knew of and knew we could trust, in Skyrim, a number of others turned up.

There were 4 redguards. Three men and a woman. Torlin and Domas, two of the men, looked to be brothers. Both were in their late 30's at the time of their turning and looked to have many years of experience. Their auras were strong, though Domas' was a little stronger than his brother's. Vilann, the other male, and Nemie, the female Redguard, neither had any links to the two brothers, nor to one another, though Vilann seemed to recognise the twins.

A family of Imperials arrived, each just as strong as the rest, though the father could have rivalled Hern if he was alive. There was the brother and sister duo, Vodus and Furiul Velvus, the father, Procus Velvus and the mother, Ladia Blonia. Why Ladia had a different surname than her family, I do not know, but she seemed to revel in the idea of being in the castle a lot more than the rest of her kin. As quickly as they arrived, they split apart, Ladia Procus, sitting in the main hall two seats apart from one another, and Vodus and Furiul walking off together, through one of the doors at the side. I had nodded to Babette to keep an eye on the two of them.

Only one Nord came. Thonro. He had made his presence known very loudly and had flirted with almost every female member of the castle at the time, though, thankfully stayed well away from me. Within an hour of his being there, he had caused three fights within the Keep. One with Sera, when he tried to get into her trousers and she punched him, hard, in the balls. I had to smile at that. A second with Procus, as Thonro had managed to flirt with Procus' wife while the man was stood quickly getting angrier and angrier with every second. Thonro's third fight was with me, as I had found him snooping around west side of the castle. "I'm not scared of you.." Were the only words he managed before I was centimetres away from him whispering "You should be.". I launched his body so far down the corridor and followed down before picking him up by his throat and opening a nearby window, holding him over the rocks below that would surely kill him. They were designed for that purpose. "You're not going to drop me." He said in some feeble attempt at using his weak power of temptation on me. "Wanna bet?" I said as I loosened my hand, watching his eyes widen as I stood there, smiling at the shouts before I heard his body hit the stone. Shutting the window, I made my way back to the main hall, finding Babette smirking at me. I grinned at the assassin, flashing my fangs at her, before moving through to the only room that held any books.

Only one other vampire arrived, her aura overshadowing the others by a long way, though still not close to reaching that of Harkon, nor my own apparently. She introduced herself only as 'Tonie', though it was clearly a fake name, and possibly accent, that sounded perhaps from Morrowind. I managed to get it out of her, without using my power, that her full name was actually Antonia Sallucia, which I had definately heard of in my years, but couldn't place it at the time. Her aura, while extremely strong was a similar colour to my own. Purple. Which meant that she may be sweet sometimes, but that was just a facade to cover a dark soul.

Altogether, we ended up with 20 vampires, including those we had previously, though I knew that both myself and Harkon deeply missed those that had been killed by the Dawnguard. How the 10 new vampires to the castle even found out about the gathering, I do not know, but each one seemed to have some form of underlying strength.

"So what do you think of the new arrivals?" Harkon asked as we sat in our chambers, in front of the blazing fire. I sighed and drank deeply from the goblet sat next to me on the table between the two of us.

"They each seem to have some form of hidden strength, but none of them are willing to prove their worth. The only one I see surviving this war is Antonia. I still don't know how they all got word of what we are doing." I said as I sat back in my chair, draining the goblet and placing it back where it was on the small round table.

"I sent out a courier to each of them. I know you trust those that you recruited and that you are reluctant to trust these new members, but trust me in this. They will all be very useful in this war, Lina." He sipped at his own goblet, staring into the fire for a moment, before sighing. "Though I wish you didn't throw Thonro to the rocks. He is.. was, a strong vampire and his gift is very helpful..."

I interrupted him quickly, defending my case and fast becoming frustrated with the new arrivals that I had mostly never heard of before in my entire existence. "Harkon, you know why I had to do what I did. He was snooping, and you know full well how well that turns out." He opened his mouth to speak. "No. Listen. You knew of my nature when you married me. If I hadn't killed him, I would have been following him incessantly until he left, finding every opportunity that I could to either fight with him, or find out what he was doing." I slumped back into my chair, sighing loudly. "Sorry. Alright, so what are all the others' gifts then? I assume they'll be powerful and helpful in our upcoming fight?" I looked to him, finding him staring back into the fire, clearly having resorted to listening to my occasional rants.

Harkon sighed slightly before he spoke. "I understand Lina. There is no need to explain your actions to me, you know that." He looked up at me, smile barely there, but there none-the-less. "As for gifts. You knew about Thonro's gift of persuasion. None of the other vampires in this castle, barr you and me, have the ability to shift forms the way we do. I assume you know that though." He looked me in the eye. I nodded at him. He waited a moment before proceeding. "The two brothers, Torlin and Domas, who I haven't known that long myself, Orthjolf introduced me to them maybe 50 years ago, have the ability to transport themselves and those around them to wherever they want."

"That must have been fun when they found out." I laughed at the idea of them being lost in a forest somewhere and having to learn to control their power with only one another for help.

"Indeed... Ladia has the strongest Seduction spells i've ever seen, and Procus has one of the strongest arms in the whole of Tamriel so I'm told. Their children, Vodus and Furiul, both can manipulate the weather, so strongly it's a wonder they haven't completely gone insane with power yet. Vilann and Nemie, while not even remotely related, were sired by the same person, both having exceptional powers of magic, Vilann preferring and having mastered that of ice, and Nemie that of fire." He stopped speaking then, clearly having finished, though he had left someone out.

"And Antonia Sallucia?" I asked, eager to know what power such an overpowering woman could have.

Harkon took his time answering but when he did, I was surprised at his answer.

"Tonie has been a good friend of mine and was a good friend of both Orthjolf and Vingalmo, for close to a thousand years now. Her power is to absorb the powers of those around her." He stopped talking and stood from his chair, leaving his goblet where it was and moving around the back of our chars. "You do not have anything to fear from her Lina. She will not harm you, that I can promise." He leaned down by my side, pressed his lips to my temple, before turning and leaving me to watch the fire on my own, as I thought about the upcoming war and the part that each one of our small army would play, planning as I went.

* * *

**OK, so there we go. :) Let me know what you thought. **


	5. Chapter 5

**Okii dokii. So this one went a bit better than I thought it would when I started writing, but I like it anyway and I hope you guys like it too. :) Enjoy. **

It didn't take long for some of the newest guests in the Keep to become restless. It was only a few days after the sudden flow of vampires into the Castle that Ladia approached the table that would have, before the Dawnguard's attack, sat Harkon, myself, Vingalmo and Orthjolf, the last seat eternally vacant after the departure of Serana. Though she was a dear friend of mine during the short time that we had known one another, after Harkon and Valerica had grown apart and Harkon had begun spending more and more time with myself instead of his wife, and then Valerica's sudden disappearance from the Court, Serana had turned from me and declared that we were no longer friends.

"My Lord." The low bow was lacking grace, and the slight note in her voice showed that she was incredibly nervous, as she should be when addressing the most powerful Lord in the vampiric world, barr Molag Bal of course. Harkon's mouth twitched up at the side before returning to it's normal expressionless flat line as his eyes flicked to me, amusement clear in the flash of his irises. I tried to keep my face neutral, failing miserably as the smirk stretched my mouth.

A time went by in silence before I got tired of the awkward moment, sighing audibly at the nerves radiating from the lesser vampire in stifling waves. "Speak Ladia." Rolling my eyes slightly, I did not notice her eyes quickly flick to mine, her scent changing slightly as she looked at me, her emotions flitting through her mind as quickly as she should think of them, but no-one had ever been able to hide their emotions from me. I watched her colours change and flicker between hatred, disgust, anger, amusement and then finally something that was a slight shock but immensely entertaining. Terror. She feared my wrath even more than Harkon's? Well that is a big misplacement of fear, that much is obvious. Harkon's terror is far more fearsome than my own.

The sharp turning of her body as she noticed the way I was monitoring her was enough to show me that she was trying to hide her emotions from me. Foolish girl. Emotions and minds were my speciality. Hunching her shoulders, she focused back on Harkon, looking up at the Lord, unable to hide the flash of lust as she looked up to her face, though it was gone as soon as it came. It took all of my control to sit and not do to her what I did to Sera, or perhaps..

I was torn from my slight deviation from the topic as I felt eyes watching me, oh-so-clearly the assassin vampire. Babette never was any good at subtlty.

Flashing my teeth at the girl, I saw a spark of fear rush through her as she looked back down to the meal in front of her. Nord. Typical for a Skyrim-born girl.

Falling back into the topic of conversation between Harkon and Ladia, I had to shake my head slightly at the woman, who could have been no older than 500.

"Harkon, some here are worried about this mission you are delving into.." Stopping at that point was a stupid mistake and she clearly recognised her mistake immediately as she rushed to rectify her error. ".. That is, to say, we think that we should be preparing in some way to be taking the cities, and villages of Skyrim..."

Cut off by Harkon raising his right hand, bearing his ring bearing the symbol of his clan, Ladia foolishly held her head up, awaiting the response from the Lord of the Castle, which did not come immediately as Harkon simply looked at the skinny woman, before sighing and slowly taking a drink from the goblet in front of him before standing to address her.

"Ladia. Do not think that there are no preparations for this attack on the people of Skyrim. My clan has been ready for this for millennia now, simply waiting for the right time to strike. The Dawnguard merely gave us the opportunity we have been seeking. Skyrim WILL know what it means to bow down, you can be sure of that. If you need to physically prepare yourself for the war that has been just waiting to happen for thousands of years, you may do so, there is a training room for combat purposes through there." He gestured casually in the general direction of the training room that had been built under my supervision some 700 years ago. "And there are books in lab at the other side."

Harkon was being a lot more talkative than he usually should have been in this situation. I'd seen him tear into Orthjolf, one of his closest advisors for questioning him before, and now he was explaining things? It didn't make sense, though I saw the slight nod from Ladia as she turned to walk away.

"Oh and Ladia." I took a deep drink from my own golden goblet, taking the time to glance around the room, noting that only Babette, Vodus and Furiel (the weather children, whispering quietly at the far end of one of the tables between each other, occasionally casting glances around the room), and Antonia Salucia remained in the main hall as Harkon talked at the female Imperial.

Watching as the woman turned back to look at Harkon as he leaning forward, hands braced on the edge of the table as he addressed her again. "Looking at me the way you did is never taken kindly in this Keep. If you look at me like that in her presence again, my dear wife, Lina." My husband turned to me, reaching his hand out to me, smiling lightly as I took it and stood by his side as he carried on, turning back to the woman who had now begun taking steps away from the two of us. "Will tear your head from your shoulders. She's done it before and I assume she'll do it again in a heartbeat, correct?" He turned his head to me in question, recieving what I knew would be seen as the flash of red covering the entirety of my eyes as I couldn't help but grin at him. "Is that understood?"

"Y-yes. Of course. Crystal clear." The stuttering only caused a higher need to laugh loudly as she all but ran from the room in record time. The laugh that escaped Harkon after she left was music to my ears. It was very rare to hear him laugh, and even rarer for him to laugh in the presence of others.

Returning to my seat was easy as I let a lazy smile cross my features, watching my husband as his body shook in the silent laugh that I had sensed he was holding back almost the entire time. "Her fear is almost sitfling, Harkon. Why is she here again? After what you just told her, I'm surprised she didn't leave the castle already." The room was deadly silent as I spoke and remained so until Harkons voice ricocheted into the stone.

"She is valuable, Lina, you know this and yes, I know, I felt it, though evidently she fears you more than me. Am I getting soft in my old age?" The smirk on his face only caused a shake of my head as I looked back into the rest of the room, Vodus and Furiel now having disappeared from the room already.

"Ah, my dear, you are not old. You are eternal, my love. You will reign supreme in this feeble country forever and the Nords will bow to you..." I was halted in my words as a chair scraped across the stone floor and toppled over. Looking to see what had caused the noise, I found Miss Sallucia stood, her gaze fixed on me, shock and fear evident in her eyes, though I could see a slight admiration in her as I vaguely focused on her emotions.

"Yes, Tonie, what is it?" Harkon said, his patience with the night already wavering as he watched the girl move from around the table into the centre of the room where the shattered floorboards, the memory of my encounter with Sera, remained unchecked.

"You..." Her eyes bore into mine as she watched me, her mind unfolding something, though it was difficult to figure exactly what. "I knew I had heard your name, though I hadn't figured it until now. You have many names throughout Tamriel my Lady." That is the first time she had spoken to me in full sentences and she still wasn't making much sense. "Just how many names have you gone by over the years, Blackthorn?" The question hung in the air as a memory forced itself into my brain and I remembered just where I remembered the name Antonia Sallucia from.

I couldn't help the low growl that left me as I looked at the young woman in front of me. "I could say the same to you, Stonearm."

**Okii dokii, I wasn't originally going to go with this plan, but I started writing and this is where it ended, so Woop! :) Let me know wht you think in the box... well.. you know the drill of course. :)**


	6. Chapter 6

**Apologies for this being so late. I genuinely thought I had uploaded this one, but apparently not, so here you go and hope you enjoy it. :D**

"Last time I saw you, you were lying in a pool of your own blood. Dying. Very quickly if my memory serves me correctly." In the far corner of my eye, I noticed Harkon had been silently watching our short confrontation, his eyebrow raised slightly, obviously having previously thought that the two of us had never met before she arrived in the Keep itself. Well, my dear, I have met a lot of people in my time, many of whom were left for dead, this woman being one of them. "So how, may I ask, are you standing before me now?"

The silent chuckle had my anger flaring and it took almost all of my self-control not to finish the job that I had so obviously not completed all those years ago, but I had to know just how she had survived the state I had left her in, since her chest was almost completely severed in two.

"Death, I must say, was very... interesting. Though my chat with our Lord Molag Bal was fun. All I did was offer him a deal and… well... here I am." The woman actually had the gall to turn in place, arms flailing dramatically as she pronounced her being there. She was turned by Molag Bal himself? Very few people have been seen as even close to worthy enough to even be in his company, never mind being given his favor to join our race, Lamae Beolfag being the oldest and most famous of the small number, Harkon and myself taking up another two in the group. I know of only 3 others, though their clans had each diminished significantly over the years, since Lamae was killed.

I looked to Antonia's mind, suspicion flooding my thoughts, though I found only the determination to win the favor of our court, even though it had been whittled down from the most powerful clan in Tamriel to just the two of us. Her aura and emotions showed no sign of deception.

"You're a true Daughter of Coldharbour as well?" Babette. I had completely forgotten about her being in the room, Miss Sallucia's story having only just gotten anywhere close to being interesting. The woman only turned to the assassin girl, nodding once.

"In a sense, though I cannot change my form as Lord Harkon and Lady Lina, but I suppose that would be the closest thing to what I am. The only difference between myself and the weaker version of our race, would be my 'gift' of course." She turned back to face myself and Harkon, addressing us instead of Babette with ease. "Though that gift itself was given to me by Sheogorath, it is still incredibly useful, which was slightly shocking to say the least. I am still not quite sure why he gave it to me, but the Dragonborn had been given the Wabbajack… Insane weapon to say the least… and me... well, he gave me the gift of being able to take the powers away from other vampires. Crazy deity. Who knew my power would come to be so useful"

Why she began mumbling slightly at the end there, I do not know, since she would have known that we could all hear her, having enhanced senses and all. The memory of our blood-filled encounter entered my mind again, and I found myself wondering just what she had been doing all these years.

Harkon had said she had been an 'old friend', so she had to have at least been close with someone in the court, though I had not even registered that I had recognized her name until she addressed me as Blackthorn. The name, to my knowledge, had only been used with links to my name during my stay with the Blackbriars, my reputation having followed me and fused with the ruthless nature of my links with the family. I do not think that Maven Blackbriar took very kindly to the darker twist on her family name. Come to think of it, I don't think any of the family would take very kindly to me should I return to Riften, though not that it even matters, since the next time we meet, I will be driving my sword through the arrogant woman's heart and my teeth into that aggravatingly pale neck of hers. That alone gave me enough motivation for this war.

The next 24 hours went by easily, no issues arising in our collective new group what-so-ever. I can't say that I was entirely saddened by this, though I can say that I was looking forward very eagerly to unleashing everything I had on the people of Skyrim. I had been the goal of our clan for thousands of years after all... not taking into account Valerica and Serana of course, the two of whom having betrayed the clan, and Harkon himself, and leaving after their multiple attempts at stopping the plans that had only gotten more and more complex. I had known for years now that both I and Harkon were getting restless at not letting loose the full extent of our powers, this war being the best motivation for holding onto them ready for letting loose at the right time.

Alone in the armory that had been almost destroyed some years ago until I had had Vingalmo and Orthjolf fix it up and build up the mass of weapons that we now hold in it. Getting the two of them to work together was difficult, but they did their best, and now we held the most expansive collection of enchanted weapons in the whole of Tamriel, barring the royal armory in Cyrodiil of course.

It was easy to just stand, breathing calm and slow, and look across at the glass case holding the armor I had not actually found myself grateful to be wearing in over two thousand years, only a few opponents having managed to be faster than me, and only then when I had found a slip in my concentration during a battle. Honestly, I couldn't remember the names of most of them, though Harkon had been one, and he had cheated slightly, using his Vampiric speed to overwhelm mine. No opponent, barring those few, had managed to even make a dent in any of my armor, never mind land a fatal blow. I barely even found the cause to wear the Volkihar armor Harkon had gifted me when I had become a senior member of the court.

Harkon's own rarely-worn and heavily modified armor stood proud on the other side of the centre piece on the wall which consisted of our matching katana swords, Harkons' slightly darker and longer than mine, fitting with the height differences of our two bodies of course, specially made 2,500 years previous, the Volkihar sigil sitting on the hilt where my fingers rest on it, so I could brush my fingers over it when in battle.

Why no-one had bothered to fix up the room of the castle before I arrived to do it, I do not know, but it was a lot of fun to help out with the moving and building and designing what weapons should go where and such.

Over the years I had studied as often as needed to make my own personal armor stronger and better in every way should this war that Harkon had devoted his life to actually happen, aiding Hestla in strengthening any part that seemed weaker than the rest, making the finished product a hybrid mix of Dragonbone armor, hints of Elven, Ebony and Stahlrim armor mixed in to create the perfect mix of looks and strength that it was now. Spending months with the Skaal on Solstheim was, quite honestly, one of the best decisions I had made in respect to the armor itself. At least the Stahlrim Glass didn't look like some horridly cut piece of nearly see through material. That much I was grateful for.

I couldn't help but remember the countless times that myself, Hestla and Fura had stood, scrutinising every piece of the armor over and over again, agreeing time and time again on weak spots to be improved upon and marks that needed buffing, always finding something that was missing, though it did take us a while to figure out just what it was.

Another week or so after we figured it out, and the purple cape that stood proud there now, was draped over the back of the hybrid armor, a small Volkihar pin holding the two ends together as the Volkihar sigil stood proud in the centre of the breastplate, excess fabric from the cape intricately weaved over and under the different pieces of metal, every piece perfectly positioned.

Only slightly hesitant to wear the armor, I let my mind wander for a moment, finding my thoughts landing on Hestla and how she would never get another chance to work on the armor with me...

Tearing myself out of said thoughts was harder that it really should have been, and I had to chide my own mind on its wanderings even though I was the one who let it go there in the first place. I stepped up to the glass cabinet holding my armor, running my hand down the front of the breastplate, my fingers moving over the sigil of our long running house as I forced myself to reach and unbuckle it so it would pull off of the mannequin easily. It was 'now or never' and I had to reach to the future, not dwell on the past.

Unclasping the cloak that I wore over my basic day-to-day armor, I folded it gently, laying it in the top cubby hole of the cabinet in front of me, ready to be picked up when I should need to get changed back from my other set of armor again after this was all over, reaching to undo the buckles that held my current armor together. It was the basic Volkihar armor set that I had recieved when I first joined the clan, a mere hundred years after Harkon himself had been turned and was easier to wear that any of my other sets of armor that I had collected, and was similar to the armor that Fura had worn, only slightly darker.

Having dropped the main part of my armor to the ground, I looked in the floor length mirror, having not cared enough to take notice of the scars that marred my body before that moment right then. Arms, stomach, chest... Each scar bore a memory that came to mind as I lightly ran my fingers over each of them, taking a moment to be sentimental for once, not knowing when my next chance would be.

Before becoming the being I was now, I thought that vampires didn't have scars, and that their wounds would simply heal at an abnormally fast pace, but… apparently not, and, though mine weren't now as prominent on my skin as they once used to be, they still show.

That man that had stabbed my belly 16 times, leaving me to die on the floor of the woods, puncturing my womb so badly that it left me unable to bear children ever again in my life, not like it makes a difference anymore, considering I was a vampire and unable to bear children anyway.

The countless marks I had gained from training with every weapon known on Nirn with hundreds of opponents over the years, revelling in the idea of a new weapon every time one was made.

The man that had sliced my neck thinking it would kill me, only to be killed himself after realising he'd sliced too far up and he'd only cut the underside of my chin and that my body was not one to give in after such a weak mark.

I swear, some people really should not exist, simply for their stupidity when it comes to... anything really.

I lingered on the scars on my shoulder, remembering the two most influential moments of my life;

The first being the moment that my mother had thrust a jagged knife through my skin, her eyes showing only malice and hatred as my father stood and laughed as he disinherited me from the family estate. I had been 15 at the time and still in Cyrodiil.

The second moment being the two small circular marks showing the exact piece of flesh that Harkon had punctured when he had bitten me that first time and infused my body with the gift of vampirism that had only grown stronger over time.

I looked on that moment as the moment when I could finally leave everything about my old life behind. My so called 'family' that had tried to kill me so many times that I had lost count, the horrible encounters I had been forced to go through with no sense of purpose or direction as to where my life was going...

The moment had been my turning point and, if given the opportunity for it again, I would not hesitate to go through everything I had dealt with to end up when I was right then, again and again and again. Harkon was... is... my life, and I would not change anything about my life for the whole of Nirn.

By the time my thoughts had finished their wandering, I had donned my armor, the only thing missing being the katana in front of me, sitting in the glass case on the long table just below that of Harkons, and the Ebony Bow that will always be my favourite weapon of all time, having been there through thick and thin, and had sat just next to our katanas for years that I did bother to count. That bow had gone with me through countless missions and quests over the years, aided me in the kllings of thousands of men and women and been there for me when I was at my lowest, becoming my first point of contact when I needed some closure for something.

"Lina?" The voice broke through my thoughts with such ease that it was a wonder that the person they came from wasn't in my mind itself...

I'm not even making sense to myself anymore...

**There we go. :D**

**Let me know what y'all thought. **


	7. Chapter 7

**Woop. Another chapter... that I wrote a while back. Sorry. :L But here you go. I'm trying to see if I can get more of this written. :D**

**_**

I could tell at least some of the vampires in the room were nervous, and I seriously wondered just why Harkon had summoned some of them, Ladia and Nemie to be specific, which was relatively aggravating, 'as if women weren't seen as weak to begin with'. It took all of five minutes of being in the room before I couldn't take the enslaught of fear from their minds anymore.

Marching up the steps by the front door, I looked out over the small wall barely reaching up to my knees from where I stood, making it so I towered over the others, I took notice of each of their faces as they watched mine.

"Listen now, and listen well. Fear is one weakness that I cannot tolerate, and you lot reek of it. I am shocked that you all can't smell it on one another." My hand twitching slightly in my eagerness to being able to obliterate the people of Skyrim, I saw Harkon move down the steps that lead up to the rear of the castle, his eyes on mine as his pride shone through the rest of his emotions, causing my lips to also twitch up slightly before I carried on. "Cast aside your fear now, and the _humans_ won't drive their swords through your still hearts. Show that you are worthy to join this war! Show that you can survive this war and make a name for yourselves!"

I knew that, what started off as a speech about fear, had turned into a pre-battle morale speech, but at that point, I couldn't have cared any less. I got my point across, most of the vampires that now stood in a small rabble in the centre of the room cheering. Granted I was used to making these speeches to more people, but this would have to do for now.

"Lina." The voice was easily distinguished from the others as I looked towards my husband, who had moved to stand just in front of the hall's head table. I heard the cheers die down immediately as everyone turned to face the Lord of the Volkihar clan, and soon-to-be ruler of Tamriel.

"My Lord..." Proceeding to dramatically bend my body at the waist, bowing to my husband, grinning all the way, I left my spot, vaguely registering that he'd started a speech of his own. As I would normally do when Harkon would go through any speech, I moved to stand by his shoulder, watching each of the vampires stood in front of us as I was previously doing as they watched my own speech.

Honestly, I had very little confidence in any of their survival.

The night time had never seemed so bright. Obviously, being a vampire, with heightened senses and such, the darkness was easy to see through, but walking across the bridge was almost too exciting. After thousands of years of waiting for it, we were finally taking the fight back to the people of Skyrim and, eventually, we were going to take back what was unlawfully ours, with carnage and with blood.

Both I, and everyone in the group knew, that most of the vampires here were un-necessary to this cause as myself and Harkon could carry out the task of killing, turning or enslaving the entirety of Skyrim by ourselves, but none dared to mention it and for that I was thankful. If I didn't kill whoever mentioned it, then I was sure the others would.

This so-called 'war' wouldn't last long. We all knew that. Mere days, or weeks, should we decide to prolong it.

I looked back to the rabble behind me and simply had to grin at the feral excitement on some of their faces, knowing that they were very eager to join this as well, though Harkons mind was set on a specific prize that, should anyone take away, he would personally tear their head off.

Ulfric Stormcloak sat at the head of Skyrim and was in charge of the armies that marched for it.

That was my husband's prize and I intended to get it for him, no matter the cost it might throw at me.

I smiled at him with the thought and looked back to the set of small boats that sat bobbing in the water.

"Harkon. Tell me this isn't our mode of travel for such an event…?" All he did was grin at me and gesture out for me to take a seat in one of them. Not the most stylish of transportation but fine. If it would take us to the mainland, I would not complain too much.

Harkon sat beside me in our boat and I felt a gust of wind blow at us. Not a natural wind either. One created for a specific purpose that, looking over to the culprit, I could tell was going to get us to our destination very fast.

The ride was over within minutes and, getting out of the boats, the only words that were spoken by anyone were, surprisingly from Harkon directed towards me.

"I still don't understand why you insist on Archery when you can use any weapon and your gifts as a vampire instead…"

Ahh yes. Harkon had never been one for the bow, where I had practiced my whole life with one and was not about to give it up. Making my way through the different bows to find one that I liked, the Ebony Bow being my favourite of course, as it was not as tightly strung as the Daedric bows, nor as loose as the others.

Through my younger years, I much preferred a long range weapon from having to dirty my clothes with hand-to-hand combat. Something which would be the subject of many arguments between myself and travelers I came across in the lands I traversed.

"Well Harkon. You already know my answer to that, I…"

I couldn't help but smile as Harkon carried on speaking for me, interrupting my sentence mid word.

"… prefer being on the outside, yes, I heard. Though you are proficient with the sword, spear, warhammer, battle-axe, magic and daggers. You even spent years with the Dark Brotherhood, Morag Tong and those Argonian assassins to better your skills and, somehow your chances in a battle, using the time to figure out the mastery of throwing knives, throwing axes.. My dear, I daresay, you could be the best warrior on this world, yet you choose that stick and string…" Gesturing to my bow that was strung on my back, we walked slowly towards the once great city of Solitude, speaking in whatever tone we wanted, though I threw a glare his way at his description of a bow.

"My Bow is not simply a stick and string, thank you very much. It is my weapon. I love it. Being away from the fray allows for easy killings as your targets don't move around too much when they don't know you're their. That is where I find my thrill. Getting to watch the panic in their eyes as they realize they've been struck and only have a limited time to find a healer before I walk into their line of view and tear out their throats before disappearing completely…" I had stopped moving momentarily and looked to see everyone had stopped with me and that we were near the pathway that would lead us up to the Solitude gates.

Harkon coughed and turned to me, smiling slightly. "Lina, you are an odd one. Lets bring this fight to those who deserve it hm?"

"Hmm, sounds like a plan to me. Lets wreak some havoc, my love. Skyrim will realize soon enough that they made a grave mistake trusting in those so-called 'vampire hunters'." I looked towards the road, heading uphill and grinned, knowing that our company was probably doing the same, waiting for the call to head forward and let loose on the city that would soon be the first of many to fall to us in this 'war'.

**There we go. Let me know what you thought and if you have any ideas and such. :D**


	8. Chapter 8

**Okii dokii. So... Here's Solitude for y'all. :D I really had fun writing this one, so I hope you enjoy it. **

I expected the graceful night-time darkness to provide a calm silence, yes, but as I passed the gates of the city of Solitude, it became obvious to me that there was no-one around, not even the town beggar… Noster, I believed his name to be. I shot a look to Sybille, who stood beside me, her eyes gleaming in the moonlight, though she only shrugged and grinned in my direction, moving further into the small courtyard, turning around to look up on the ramparts of the gates and see whether there was any more guards to be dealt with, though there were none.

The noise of boots on the stones alerted me to a presence further in the city that took all of our attention away from one another.

It was a woman.

By her smell, I found her to be an elven woman, though her perfume told of an upper class upbringing, or at least a high enough opinion of herself to spritz herself in the stuff often enough as an adult.

That scent alone told me she was one of the two elves that ran the clothing store and belittled anyone they came into contact with, including myself on the occasions I had spent in the city itself. Apparently, she didn't notice our presence. At least not yet, though, as I looked to the vampire on my other side whom, it turned out, was Antonia, I found an urge to tear into her, where I hadn't had that notion as of yet in the hold.

No-one else seemed to want to take this one, so I took it into my own hands and was beside her in a moment, yet it took her more than a second too long to notice my presence beside her and I sought out my canines with my tongue before sinking them into the side of her neck, my fingers grabbing at her shoulders, immediately feeling the warmth of her blood in my mouth.

It took mere moments, but felt like ecstasy as I drained the woman of her blood, pulling my mouth away after what was obviously long enough, and tearing away part of her throat with me. I never even felt my hand reach around her to grab that pointed chin of hers and pull sharply when I pulled my mouth away, but before I knew it, she was on the floor, her neck snapped and her body crumpled in a heap.

A moment later, I felt eyes focused on me and, when I looked up, I found the glowing red eyes of Harkon gazing at me, his own elongated canines visible. In less than a second, I was mere inches in front of him, grinning with him in the moonlight of Solitude.

"Elves have such delicious blood." Flicking my tongue out, I licked up a drop of blood on the side of my mouth, smirking as I watched Harkons eyes eagerly watch my movements before he ducked down and, before I knew it, our mouths were interlocked, our tongues battling against one another and the taste of blood rushing through both of our mouths, but Harkon pulled away far too early for my liking and, ignoring my audible protest, he licked his lips and grinned a smile that showed just how much he wanted to sink his teeth into someone.

"Indeed they do." He moved around me slowly and went to make his way farther into the city.

It was only now that I noticed every other vampire had disappeared, though I noticed numerous doors hanging open, some obviously having been opened more forcefully than others. I assumed Hert and probably Procus had opted for more brute strength, than subtlety, where Babette and Sybille would most likely have picked the locks.

It is a shame that none of the Thieves Guild were vampires. Yet. Their skills would have been excellent in this endeavour, not that it even mattered. None of the residents of Solitude were going to be spared from this massacre.

I stood outside for a few minutes, basking in the freedom I felt having let the blood of the elven woman make its presence known in my system, before another presence joined me outside and I found a blood splattered Nemie emerge from one of the buildings close to the gates. The Inn. Of course, aside from the guardhouse and the Blue Palace perhaps, the Inn would have held the most bodies and, at this time of night, each and every one would be easy pickings.

The woman looked at me and smiled lightly, before clearly using her vampire speed to move off to another part of town to look for more victims and I couldn't help but laugh at the eagerness of these people.

Of course we were all very eager to properly begin this, but Solitude was making it too easy so, deciding on the best place to go for a challenge, I made my way through the silent city, down and back up, passing through the small gates leading to the Palace, hoping that one of them might be awake and try and challenge me for their blood.

I opened the eternally unlocked doors of the building and entered smoothly, immediately hearing the soft snores of some of the residents of the place, only noticing a couple of people that might have been awake, each one on the balcony that held the Jarls Throne. Despite the slight confusion, I got there quickly enough, what I found making it immediately amusing to my eyes as I watched the now fearless Sera almost snarling at an eerily calm Sybille Stentor as the two of them argued over the blood of the court.

"How many chances have you had to take from these street rats that you HAVEN'T TAKEN!?" The younger spoke, yelling at the woman I knew could tear her to pieces in less than a second.

"Hmm, countless. Yet, how long have you been a vampire, Sera? Answer me that." I saw the gleam in Sybille's eyes as she turned her head to flash them at me. I leaned back against the balcony wall, knowing that this would prove to be an interesting confrontation as Sera went to speak but was interrupted before even a syllable left her mouth. "I have been in this court for decades, not one of these blatant morons suspecting me, yet watching as they take advantage of their own youth, suspicion of almost everything around them clouding their judgement of what was right before their faces. Do you understand just how both amusing and frustrating that is? I even heard of your antics and that of your sisters in Morthal. The incident with the little girl. You didn't exactly keep it a secret did you?"

Sera clearly wanted to protest but Sybille was spewing everything out easily and smoothly and yet the younger of the two still hadn't noticed my presence in the room. "No, you got yourselves into trouble. And with the Dragonborn of all people. How you are still alive, I will never know. That woman was insufferable, yes, and yet, she hadn't killed any of you. Not Movarth, not you or your sister, not even little Laelette… I wonder why that is…. Anyway, that isn't the point…"

No it most definitely wasn't, so why did she bring it up? The Dragonborn had messed up because she had been inexperienced when she went to Morthal and it had only been after a passing stranger helped her, had she even survived after the enslaught of Movarth's cronies attacking her. Apparently, according to my sources, she hadn't been back since.

"The point is, you are a foolish little girl and, by challenging me with your claim on this court, you have made a grievous mistake…"

"I made no mistake!" Ooh, this was getting good, though I had to listen around the Palace to hear whether anyone had awoken after her shout echoed around the walls.

Sybille visibly tensed and I could tell, without my interference, my old friend would tear into her opponent. I let out a groan at the thought of not being able to allow that to happen, but I doubt Harkon would be very happy if I let her be killed by another vampire… Now a human… that would be fine… Right?

A grin spread over my face before Sera's name left my lips in a shout that had both of them whipping their heads towards me. I stared down the younger woman who, at first, looked as though she wanted to murder me as well, before noticing who I was and cowering, her body trembling as it had the first time she'd tried to instigate a confrontation with me after I had meddled with her mind.

"Leave the Palace, girl. Stop pulling fights where they are not needed, stupid woman." In a flash, she was gone from my sight and, I assume, had left the building, though I saw the accusation in Sybille's eyes when I turned towards her afterwards. "What? As much as I would love to see her killed, her fearlessness is… entertaining to say the least. Now then. Take your revenge, sister. Enjoy your meal, though leave that… Falk… to me. I never liked him and would love to tear out his throat."

The woman in front of me nodded in acceptance and stepped aside, turning to make her way to the Jarls quarters, and I followed a moment after, looked towards the throne for a second, an idea coming to mind before I left for Falk Firebeard's room.

The man was sleeping soundly, no suspicion of his surroundings what-so-ever. Fool. I expected more from a man of such a renowned court. Even his blankets were low enough that he left his pale neck exposed and open.

It was an invitation I simply could not refuse and I quickly and easily sunk my teeth into the man, a noiseless action if ever there was one, though he did not wake. Stupid boy.

Tearing away the skin and muscle on his neck was satisfying to say the least and I found myself grinning with the feel of his blood in my body, before I plunged my nails into his chest and tore away his last chance at a heartbeat, leaving the room as easily as I entered it, making my way back to the throne room that was still as empty as it was when I left it.

Taking my earlier thought in mind, I strolled over to the empty chair on the dais and sat down, sighing as I let my head fall back against the cushion, my eyes fixed on the heart in my hand as I squeezed the thing so much it turned to mush in my hands, my fist now looking sufficiently bloody for the time being as I took a moment before calling Sybille.

The woman appeared before me in a flash and one of the plans we'd formed eons previous came to fruition as we searched through the palace quickly, moving bodies up to the balcony-like throne room, allowing their corpses to litter the floor of it.

Before I had not noticed it, but the place was definitely lacking something and, seeing the bloody figures of Falk Firebeard, Odar the chef, Bolgeir Bearclaw, Erikur and Bryling (I never much liked the two thanes. Both were power hungry and egotistical, how Sybille had spent so much time in their presence and not killed them already was beyond me.), some of the Ex Jarls that Ulfric had had removed from power, including Balgruuf and that aggravating Dunmer housecarl of his, and of course the prize meal of the day, awarded to Sybille Stentor, Elisif 'the Fair', I realised what that 'something' was.

The woman was naïve and young and barely did anything in court what-so-ever, save for being the face of Solitude when the need arose. Why she was allowed to stay in power, I will never know.

Sitting back on that throne with all those bodies in front of me felt glorious and, as I looked to my old friend and comrade, I felt a power surge that was simply marvellous to behold. Sybille's face tore out into a grin wide enough to split her face in half and I could tell my own had matched it as I looked out over the now perfect room.

I knew that the others would eventually turn up, so I took the chance I had and breathed in deeply, basking in the freedom I felt when on that throne, unsurprised when a voice jolted me out of my thoughts.

"Hmm, my dear you look divine." I felt his presence as soon as he opened the door, but seeing him casually walk up the winding staircase and into my view was chilling and, well, quite frankly, I couldn't think of a better view as his face turned to me when he spoke.

"Oh, dear husband, must you always be so messy when you eat." My canines pricked against my lower lip as I grinned at the man, who only grinned back at me in that way that looked like he was going to eat me, the blood on his face dripping down his chin. Now THAT sounded fun.

"Ahh, Lina. I could say the same for you. I see you've had fun with the court." He gestured around the balcony and I saw his eyes linger on the mush of a heart in my hand before moving on to the mess of limbs that was the Jarl of Solitude and former High Queen of Skyrim. "Was this all your doing? You know you really should save your appetite…" His grin only widened at his own words and wit, though as I shook my head, he strolled towards me, casually kicking aside one of the former Jarls… Sorli maybe? I don't know all of their names, not like it matters.

"No. I got here too late it would seem. Miss Sera and Sybille took care of the court, leaving my meal as the red head over there." I nodded my head towards where my meal lay in a crumpled heap over Bolgeir. The two of them would have made such a lovely couple if their love was only realised sooner. Fools. "And I can tell you… My appetite hasn't even been whetted yet. I have a much bigger prize on MY mind."

Harkons eyes flicked to mine and I knew he knew exactly what I wanted, or rather, who I wanted, as my ultimate meal-of-the-day. "Hmm. Indeed. Well… Might I say, you look mighty fine sitting in that throne, my love. I may have to have my court seated here when we are King and Queen… Or would you rather be Empress?"

Oh now THAT was a question. High Queen of Skyrim, or Empress?

**Hmm... Things are finally getting interesting. :D**

**I'll get the next chapter up ASAP. **

**Review responses.**

**Guest: So am I! I got a lot of plans for fighting and such... but in the other holds i'm afraid, so I apologise for not having any in this one it's just... I'm saving it. :D Yes they are an unstoppable force TOGETHER... but if they separate? ;) As for the ending of Dawnguard... I was so annoyed with it.. Having to kill Harkon was the worst.. I remember having to redo it three times with the Ebony Blade cause he just wouldn't die.. I really wanted to become this really awesome Vampire Overlord woman. I was looking forward to it so much and then... Everything went to hell.. :L And the bow! That's just a pain in the bum.. I mean it only worked momentarily.. :L But the fact that, should you side with the Volkihar, you can fix up parts of the Castle, that's pretty cool, like with Serana's room. :) I liked that. **

**Ahsoka1248: Yeah.. I really wanted to have Babette in it at least somewhere seeing as how she's a vampire (obviously) and the fact that the Volkihar would have been so close to Skyrim for a while, they would have at least crossed paths at some point, so I had a connection built. :D It wouldn't really make sense for the Volkihar to kill her and having her on the side of the Dawnguard... now that would just be messy and REEEEAAAALLLLLY wouldn't make sense. :D**

**Anywho, let me know what you thought of this chapter, or of the story as a whole, or of my writing, whatever and I will most definitely get back to you of course.**

**Any ideas or plot twists y'all have, just let me know. I'd love to incorporate everyone's ideas together and make a gigantic fusion. :D**

**Haaha, but do let me know if you want anything specific to happen. :D Always happy for new things. **


	9. Chapter 9

**Alright. Chapter 9. I had already started writing this, just before I posted chapter 8, and just finished writing it, so I'm now up to date with myself... I suppose. I don't know. **

**Anywho... :) off topic.**

**Here's chapter 9, and... well... See for yourselves. :D Hope you enjoy it. **

Solitude was always a fun place, no matter who was in charge, and now that it was under no rule, it was simply beautiful. Everyone was visibly more energized by the fresh blood spilling freely from new corpses. Even Vighar seemed to be enjoying himself, and I rarely saw him smile in all my years as a vampire. The old man was usually so grouchy, but it was as though this new change in Skyrim had made a change in him as well.

"Everyone had fun?" The words were received with a full round of nods and rumbles of 'yeah', 'of course' and 'indeed'. "Well, this was only one city and everyone was asleep. We took this one at night, but, thanks to the Dragonborn and her… trip with my daughter and ex-wife in the Soul Cairn…" A flash of anger rushed through me at the thought of the 3 women. It was obvious from the very beginning that Valerica was against Harkon's plans, but still Serana was upset when she left and it took the younger woman hundreds of years to even find out where her mother went.

Between the 3 of them, they probably could have overtaken Harkon, should they completely have combined their power, but apparently that didn't happen.

It would be a personal privilege to destroy the woman that turned against her own husband. Valerica was always a particularly vile woman, her efforts to stop Harkon's plans only made her more and more of an enemy in my eyes and I was severely disappointed when I found that Serana was following in her mother's footsteps.

I would be eager to find out exactly how Harkon would deal with his EX wife, should she return to Nirn.

"… We have the means to attack during the daylight and make Skyrim a place where vampires would be free to roam, come 'night' or 'day'…" Ahh, yes. The bow that would require my blood to activate and, hopefully, would destroy the sun permanently. As he spoke, Harkon pulled the bow from his back, addressing all 17 other vampires in the courtyard as we stood were guards once stood training day and night, but now lay lifeless on the floor, not including myself and him, lifting the thing into the air to admire it.

I admit, it was a beautiful bow and its supposed powers made it all the more glorious.

Harkon then proceeded to turn to me, his hand extended in my direction. "My Lady. Are you ready?"

I grinned up at my husband, gesturing to him with my hand. Obviously he knew exactly what I was gesturing for as he handed me an arrow that was apparently made for the bow.

To hold it in my hands felt divine and, as I thrust the tip into my hand, the metal of it quickly becoming coated in my blood, I couldn't help but smile at the sight, my only thought becoming that of 'Finally, our millennia of plans coming to fruition in mere days… and all thanks to the Dragonborn… destined to 'save' Skyrim, yet was the ultimate key to its downfall…'.

"I've been ready for centuries my love." Handing back the arrow, I watched as Harkon grinned back to me, readying the arrow in the bow and firing it directly at where the sun was just now peaking over the walls of the city.

Too long went by where nothing happened and dread filled my being. Why hadn't it worked? Was it my blood? The arrow? Did the Dragonborn do something to the bow? Were the scriptures wrong?...

I could tell similar thoughts were going through the minds of the others and the anger that radiated off of Harkon was almost to the point of combustion, but then I saw it and my eyes clearly widened as I watched eagerly, my body moving closer to my husbands as the sight became more and more exciting.

The sun seemed to bleed. Slowly, but gaining speed as the darkness seemed to spill through it, flooding the ground and air in a familiar darkness that was the night.

I didn't feel the movement of my body until Harkon's hand was pressed against my face and I noticed that I was visibly shaking, my face morphed into a feral grin as I looked at the man that made this possible.

"We did it." My words came out almost as a snarl, but the grin was matched on Harkons face as I spoke. "Harkon, we did it! Finally! After all those years of not being able to, we can now walk freely whenever we choose! YES!" It was so very difficult to hold back my excitement as I took hold of Harkon's face and pulled him in for a brutal kiss, pulling away after a moment and turning back to where the sun as it was completely absorbed by the darkness.

The chuckle from beside me was ignored, but I felt Harkon's hand on my shoulder as we watched the sight. "Yes Lina. We did it. And now we can take what it ours."

No matter the plight, our plans for the takeover, had only changed a handful of times. And those were when new people were added to the fray and when Valerica had left with her daughter. The Dragonborn's insistence on helping at first was amusing to say the least, though her betrayal came as no surprise, considering her connection with Serana. It was only a matter of time before she turned towards the Dawnguard and away from the Volkihar, though it was a pity I had little chance to watch the aggravating woman squirm as her body was torn open slowly. I partly regretted my choice of killing her so quickly. It would have been a privilege to have watched her suffer on the racks, or become cattle in the dungeons of Castle Volkihar, a slave to the court.

The ideas were interesting, but now all I could do was look towards another goal and instead focus on making sure the plan went off without any more hitches. Namely Serana and Valerica coming back to try and stop us.

While in Solitude, a thought came to my mind as I wandered the streets once again, and I made my way back to the Palace, only to call on Antonia, who was by my side in moments, everyone else seemingly having made their presence scarce as I talked with the woman.

"Antonia, you knew the Dragonborn, correct?" I received a nod in confirmation.

"And would I be correct in assuming that she owns property in each hold?" I turned and stepped back out the front door of the Blue Palace, into the small garden-like-courtyard, Antonia close behind me.

"Yes. Most of them. She owns Proudspire Manor, as I'm sure was going to be your next question. It is down the street there…" She pointed, I'm sure, but I was already on my way towards the house that simply reeked of the woman. It was a house I was sure that she'd have kept some interesting artefacts in, since it was one of the best protected houses in Skyrim, barr those held by the Jarls' of course, and Castle Volkihar, but that was kept protected by the rumour mill spread over Skyrim of curses and such.

The house was 3 stories, that much was obvious. 2 entrances, one on basement, the other on the 'ground floor' or entrance area, I suppose as it would have looked if you entered it properly.

No-one was in the place, so I assumed someone had already been here since the dreadful woman's housecarl also lived here. Information gathered from Sybille Stentor was always accurate and interesting of course.

It was one of the more expensive buildings in Solitude, but the only thing on the bottom floor that caught my eye was a set of armor on one of the 2 mannequins. I'd heard the legends of Nightingale's from many people in my years, and knew them to exist, but the knowledge that the Dragonborn had been one… That was new. I stood in front of the armor that bore the sigil of the Nightingale, trying to get a full feel of just how powerful some of the armor's in Skyrim actually were.

The set was made out of nothing I'd ever seen before, but I wanted it, so I took it off the mannequin, finding it to be surprisingly light. I was eager to find out what it felt like to wear, so I carried on, leaving the second mannequin completely alone, figuring that a set of Thalmor robes wouldn't come in handy anytime soon, if ever, though the 'ground' floor was simply boring, consisting of only an entrance hall type room and a kitchen, though I did find the corpse of, what I assumed to be the housecarl I'd heard about, though the name eluded me.

The upstairs was easily more interesting. Apparently, the Dragonborn had had children… at least at some point. I decided to leave that room, knowing that most children only kept things such as toys, or plants, and other things they find interesting, which would be nothing of use to me.

The master bedroom was significantly more amusing. As I entered, I could immediately feel power radiating from everywhere. It was very intense, though the chest at the foot of the bed seemed to draw my attention more than anywhere else and, as I opened it, I found out why.

The horde of weapons that were seemingly dumped on top of one another inside was amazing. A number of them I recognised from drawings and encounters with others that had held them in the past.

Did this woman not care that she'd had encounters with some of the most feared individuals in this realm? And probably other realms too…?

The Blade of Woe… Previously carried by Astrid, Matron of the Falkreath Dark Brotherhood Sanctuary. A weapon of Sithis, the Dread Mother and the Void.

Mehrunes' Razor. I had only experienced it once, but back then it was coveted by the Mythic Dawn. Then it was split into 3 parts. Apparently Miss Dragonborn had had it repaired somehow.

The Mace of Molag Bal. The last I'd heard of it, it had been sealed away somewhere in a cave.

More weapons came up that were linked with more and more Daedra. The Rueful Axe, Volendrung, Sanguine Rose… Now I'm sure THAT was a night and a half. I'd heard about the antics there and the gossiping that had ensued over the following days in the Castle… Of course the ever amusing Wabbajack. A weapon that no-one knew the complete power of, since it was created by the Mad God himself. And also Dawnbreaker, which no-one had even seen or touched in decades.

But then came more interesting weapons, and as I dropped fully to my knees in front of the box, I smelled a new presence in the house, smiling slightly as I recognised it to be Harkon as he moved through the house with ease, making his way up the stairs.

I waited a moment before he entered the room and saw what I was doing.

"Antonia told me where you'd be." Figures. "I can feel the power Lina. Is that Mehrunes' Razor?" The man stepped closer to me and bent down to pick it up from where I'd lain it carefully on the floor to my side. I turned my head to nod at him before gesturing my head to the other weapons.

"It seems the Dragonborn was a woman who got around. Mehrunes Dagon, Molag Bal… Even Sanguine… I'd bet that guy would have given her an… interesting night, don't you think?"

The smirk, and knowing look I received from my husband was amusing to say the least, his words forcing a smile onto my face. "Lina, my dear, you never cease to provide entertainment in your words." He leaned over and pressed a kiss to my temple, before whispering. "Such lewd words coming from a woman who almost rivalled Sanguine countless times over…"

"Hey! Don't let him hear you say that." He only laughed at me, pulling a small laugh from me as I turned back to the box I was meant to be looking through. "Anyway. Look at this…" I reached into the box as my eyes fell on a sword, hidden under most of the others, laying against the wooden bottom of the chest itself.

Pulling it out carefully was difficult, but thankfully, the other weapons didn't make too much of a noise and I unsheathed the blade that was the same shape as my own, and Harkon's.

"Akaviri? I don't recall hearing that she went anywhere near anyone related to any of the Akaviri warriors…" Harkon muttered as he picked up another of the weapons that lay on the floor beside us.

"Harkon, there's probably a lot she's done that we wouldn't have heard about. The next room certainly proves that. I don't remember hearing of any children birthed, or adopted by the woman, nor of any… partners either, though if the scent lingering in here is anything to follow, she was frequently… in the company… of one." I looked over at my husband and saw his nose twitch slightly before he met my gaze and shrugged, rolling his eyes.

"I see your point, Lina. Very well. Though the smell is… partially familiar. I recognise the scent of this… partner of hers. Clearly she hadn't been around him for a while before coming to the Castle, otherwise I would have smelled him on here there aswell." Lifting an eyebrow at him, I watched as he shook his head and gestured to the chest. "Alright. Are you done with this chest? We have other business to attend you, you realise…"

"Yes, yes. I realise. Though I insist that we explore this room. The power collected here is phenomenal and I would like to see just what that woman has collected over her short time in Skyrim. If the Nightingale Armor and Daedric weapons are anything to go by, the collection should be very interesting and would make ours even better than it already is."

Harkon was clearly amused by my request of searching the room, and agreed quickly enough, but insisted that the task would have to wait for the time being, as there was the matter of 'who to let live' to deal with, that would include the entire collection of vampires that we'd assembled.

A number of things came to mind about how wrong that was.

Why we'd even assembled them as a group was one. Myself and Harkon could easily have defeated Skyrim by ourselves. Bal, both of us could do it single handedly, should we so choose to.

Another issue was why we had to consult with the others in the first place. Agreed, it would be a diplomatic solution, should there come someone that was a favourite of another, they would be kept alive, but the issue remained that the whole point of this endeavour was to conquer the country, not make these pitiful decisions with vampires that would die within minutes of a battle.

Despite their growing excitement for the battle, there was still fear lingering in their minds that was grating further and further on my mind and still, there was only a few I could see living this through, though the options as to who would be put forward as potentials for a 'lifestyle change' were intriguing. I had a few ideas of my own.

Some people in Skyrim were due to be put in their place, not simply killed brutally, and some, I had a high enough view of to give the kindness of changing them.

Whether Harkon would agree with me mattered not. I would not kill those I would rather see serve me, nor would I destroy those that would make an exceptional member of the new court of Skyrim.

**Alrighty then, hope you all enjoyed this latest installment of... this. :D**

**xbangxbangx: That would be absolutely phenomenal, but then Bethesda would probably make it so you'd have to kill at least some people that you liked, so it would be really sad. :L Though I think that the option to change a person into a vampire would be pretty cool. :D Being leader of everything... Yeah, fair point. But I guess that would be up to you as a character/person as to what you'd want to be. A good leader, or a bad one... Kill everyone, or be merciful and grant wishes and stuff. Heck yeah. His character was awesome. Well.. the whole story was awesome, but Harkon was brill. :D I mean he was so calm and collected but then sometimes it was just like... Woah... Chill bro. Take your pills and sit down. No, I definitely wouldn't either... I'd probably be killed instantly, unless I was Lina of course, in which case... bring it on baby. :D Haahaaa.**

**Anywho guys, let me know what you thought about this one and... I'll see you next time.**


	10. Chapter 10

**Alrighty then, so here's the next chapter. I intended to upload this last week, but a couple of problems arose and prevented that, so here it is. :D Hope you like it. It's not the best one, but I enjoyed writing it all the same. :) xxxx**

Solitude was always a fun place, no matter who was in charge, and now that it was under no rule, it was simply beautiful. Everyone was visibly more energized by the fresh blood spilling freely from new corpses. Even Vighar seemed to be enjoying himself, and I rarely saw him smile in all my years as a vampire. The old man was usually so grouchy, but it was as though this new change in Skyrim had made a change in him as well.

"Everyone had fun?" The words were received with a full round of nods and rumbles of 'yeah', 'of course' and 'indeed'. "Well, this was only one city and everyone was asleep. We took this one at night, but, thanks to the Dragonborn and her… trip with my daughter and ex-wife in the Soul Cairn…" A flash of anger rushed through me at the thought of the 3 women. It was obvious from the very beginning that Valerica was against Harkon's plans, but still Serana was upset when she left and it took the younger woman hundreds of years to even find out where her mother went.

Between the 3 of them, they probably could have overtaken Harkon, should they completely have combined their power, but apparently that didn't happen.

It would be a personal privilege to destroy the woman that turned against her own husband. Valerica was always a particularly vile woman, her efforts to stop Harkon's plans only made her more and more of an enemy in my eyes and I was severely disappointed when I found that Serana was following in her mother's footsteps.

I would be eager to find out exactly how Harkon would deal with his EX wife, should she return to Nirn.

"… We have the means to attack during the daylight and make Skyrim a place where vampires would be free to roam, come 'night' or 'day'…" Ahh, yes. The bow that would require my blood to activate and, hopefully, would destroy the sun permanently. As he spoke, Harkon pulled the bow from his back, addressing all 17 other vampires in the courtyard as we stood were guards once stood training day and night, but now lay lifeless on the floor, not including myself and him, lifting the thing into the air to admire it.

I admit, it was a beautiful bow and its supposed powers made it all the more glorious.

Harkon then proceeded to turn to me, his hand extended in my direction. "My Lady. Are you ready?"

I grinned up at my husband, gesturing to him with my hand. Obviously he knew exactly what I was gesturing for as he handed me an arrow that was apparently made for the bow.

To hold it in my hands felt divine and, as I thrust the tip into my hand, the metal of it quickly becoming coated in my blood, I couldn't help but smile at the sight, my only thought becoming that of 'Finally, our millennia of plans coming to fruition in mere days… and all thanks to the Dragonborn… destined to 'save' Skyrim, yet was the ultimate key to its downfall…'.

"I've been ready for centuries my love." Handing back the arrow, I watched as Harkon grinned back to me, readying the arrow in the bow and firing it directly at where the sun was just now peaking over the walls of the city.

Too long went by where nothing happened and dread filled my being. Why hadn't it worked? Was it my blood? The arrow? Did the Dragonborn do something to the bow? Were the scriptures wrong?...

I could tell similar thoughts were going through the minds of the others and the anger that radiated off of Harkon was almost to the point of combustion, but then I saw it and my eyes clearly widened as I watched eagerly, my body moving closer to my husbands as the sight became more and more exciting.

The sun seemed to bleed. Slowly, but gaining speed as the darkness seemed to spill through it, flooding the ground and air in a familiar darkness that was the shadows of night.

I didn't feel the movement of my body until Harkon's hand was pressed against the side of my face and I noticed that I was visibly shaking, my face morphed into a feral grin as I looked at the man that made this possible.

"We did it." My words came out almost as a snarl, but the grin was matched on Harkons face as I spoke. "Harkon, we did it! Finally! After all those years of not being able to, we can now walk freely whenever we choose! YES!" It was so very difficult to hold back my excitement as I took hold of Harkon's face and pulled him in for a brutal kiss, pulling away after a moment and turning back to where the sun as it was completely absorbed by the darkness.

The chuckle from beside me was ignored, but I felt Harkon's hand on my shoulder as we watched the sight. "Yes Lina. We did it. And now we can take what it ours."

No matter the plight, our plans for the takeover, had only changed a handful of times. And those were when new people were added to the fray and when Valerica had left with her daughter. The Dragonborn's insistence on helping at first was amusing to say the least, though her betrayal came as no surprise, considering her connection with Serana. It was only a matter of time before she turned towards the Dawnguard and away from the Volkihar, though it was a pity I had little chance to watch the aggravating little woman squirm as her body was torn open slowly. I partly regretted my choice of killing her so quickly. It would have been a privilege to have watched her suffer on the racks, or become cattle in the dungeons of Castle Volkihar, a slave to the court.

The ideas were interesting, but now all I could do was look towards another goal and instead focus on making sure the plan went off without any more hitches. Namely Serana and Valerica coming back to try and stop us.

While in Solitude, a thought came to my mind as I wandered the streets once again, and I made my way back to the Palace, only to call on Antonia, who was by my side in moments, everyone else seemingly having made their presence scarce as I talked with the woman.

"Antonia, you knew the Dragonborn, correct?" I received a nod in confirmation.

"And would I be correct in assuming that she owns property in each hold?" I turned and stepped back out the front door of the Blue Palace, into the small garden-like-courtyard, Antonia close behind me.

"Yes. Most of them. She owns Proudspire Manor, as I'm sure was going to be your next question. It is down the street there…" She pointed, I'm sure, but I was already on my way towards the house that simply reeked of the woman. It was a house I was sure that she'd have kept some interesting artefacts in, since it was one of the best protected houses in Skyrim, barr those held by the Jarls' of course, and Castle Volkihar, but that was kept protected by the rumour mill spread over Skyrim of curses and such.

The house was 3 stories, that much was obvious. 2 entrances, one on basement, the other on the 'ground floor' or entrance area, I suppose as it would have looked if you entered it properly.

No-one was in the place, so I assumed someone had already been here since the dreadful woman's housecarl also lived here. Information gathered from Sybille Stentor was always accurate and interesting of course.

It was one of the more expensive buildings in Solitude, but the only thing on the bottom floor that caught my eye was a set of armor on one of the 2 mannequins. I'd heard the legends of Nightingale's from many people in my years, and knew them to exist. You don't live as long as I have and not know at least some things that were meant to have been kept secret. But the knowledge that the Dragonborn had been one… That was new. I stood in front of the armor that bore the sigil of the Nightingale, trying to get a full feel of just how powerful some of the armor's in Skyrim actually were.

The set was made out of nothing I'd ever seen before, but I wanted it, so I took it off the mannequin, finding it to be surprisingly light. I was eager to find out what it felt like to wear, so I carried on, leaving the second mannequin completely alone, figuring that a set of Thalmor robes wouldn't come in handy anytime soon, if ever, though the 'ground' floor was simply boring, consisting of only an entrance hall type room and a kitchen, though I did find the corpse of, what I assumed to be the housecarl I'd heard about, though the name eluded me.

The upstairs was easily more interesting. Apparently, the Dragonborn had had children… at least at some point. I decided to leave that room, knowing that most children only kept things such as toys, or plants, and other things they find interesting, which would be nothing of use to me.

The master bedroom was significantly more amusing. As I entered, I could immediately feel power radiating from everywhere. It was very intense, though the chest at the foot of the bed seemed to draw my attention more than anywhere else and, as I opened it, I found out why.

The horde of weapons that were seemingly dumped on top of one another inside was amazing. A number of them I recognised from drawings and encounters with others that had held them in the past.

Did this woman not care that she'd had encounters with some of the most feared individuals in this realm? And probably other realms too…?

The Blade of Woe… Previously carried by Astrid, Matron of the Falkreath Dark Brotherhood Sanctuary. A weapon of Sithis, the Dread Mother and the Void.

Mehrunes' Razor. I had only experienced it once, but back then it was coveted by the Mythic Dawn. Then it was split into 3 parts. Apparently Miss Dragonborn had had it repaired somehow.

The Mace of Molag Bal. The last I'd heard of it, it had been sealed away somewhere in a cave.

More weapons came up that were linked with more and more Daedra. The Rueful Axe, Volendrung, Sanguine Rose… Now I'm sure THAT was a night and a half. I'd heard about the antics there and the gossiping that had ensued over the following days in the Castle… Of course the ever amusing Wabbajack. A weapon that no-one knew the complete power of, since it was created by the Mad God himself. And also Dawnbreaker, which no-one had even seen or touched in decades.

But then came more interesting weapons, and as I dropped fully to my knees in front of the box, I smelled a new presence in the house, smiling slightly as I recognised it to be Harkon as he moved through the house with ease, making his way up the stairs.

I waited a moment before he entered the room and saw what I was doing.

"Antonia told me where you'd be." Figures. "I can feel the power, Lina. Is that Mehrunes' Razor?" The man stepped closer to me and bent down to pick it up from where I'd lain it carefully on the floor to my side. I turned my head to nod at him before gesturing my head to the other weapons.

"It seems the Dragonborn was a woman who got around. Mehrunes Dagon, Molag Bal, Sheogorath… Even Sanguine… I'd bet that guy would have given her an… interesting night, don't you think?"

The smirk, and knowing look I received from my husband was amusing to say the least, his words forcing a smile onto my face. "Lina, my dear, you never cease to provide entertainment in your words." He leaned over and pressed a kiss to my temple, before whispering. "Such lewd words coming from a woman who almost rivalled Sanguine countless times over…"

"Hey! Don't let him hear you say that." He only laughed at me, pulling a small laugh from me as I turned back to the box I was meant to be looking through. "Anyway. Look at this…" I reached into the box as my eyes fell on a sword, hidden under most of the others, laying against the wooden bottom of the chest itself.

Pulling it out carefully was difficult, but thankfully, the other weapons didn't make too much of a noise and I unsheathed the blade that was the same shape as my own, and Harkon's.

"Akaviri? I don't recall hearing that she went anywhere near anyone related to any of the Akaviri warriors…" Harkon muttered as he picked up another of the weapons that lay on the floor beside us.

"Harkon, there's probably a lot she's done that we wouldn't have heard about. The next room certainly proves that. I don't remember hearing of any children birthed, or adopted by the woman, nor of any… partners either, though if the scent lingering in here is anything to follow, she was frequently… in the company… of one." I looked over at my husband and saw his nose twitch slightly before he met my gaze and shrugged, rolling his eyes.

"I see your point, Lina. Very well. Though the smell is… partially familiar. I recognise the scent of this… partner of hers. Clearly she hadn't been around him for a while before coming to the Castle, otherwise I would have smelled him on her there aswell." Lifting an eyebrow at him, I watched as he shook his head and gestured to the chest. "Alright. Are you done with this chest? We have other business to attend you, you realise…"

"Yes, yes. I realise. Though I insist that we explore this room. The power collected here is phenomenal and I would like to see just what that woman has collected over her short time in Skyrim. If the Nightingale Armor and Daedric weapons are anything to go by, the collection should be very interesting and would make ours even better than it already is."

Harkon was clearly amused by my request of searching the room, and agreed quickly enough, but insisted that the task would have to wait for the time being, as there was the matter of 'who to let live' to deal with, that would include the entire collection of vampires that we'd assembled.

A number of things came to mind about how wrong that was.

Why we'd even assembled them as a group was one. Myself and Harkon could easily have defeated Skyrim by ourselves. Bal, both of us could do it single handedly, should we so choose to.

Another issue was why we had to consult with the others in the first place. Agreed, it would be a diplomatic solution, should there come someone that was a favourite of another, they would be kept alive, but the issue remained that the whole point of this endeavour was to conquer the country, not make these pitiful decisions with vampires that would die within minutes of a battle.

Despite their growing excitement for the battle, there was still fear lingering in their minds that was grating further and further on my mind and still, there was only a few I could see living this through, though the options as to who would be put forward as potentials for a 'lifestyle change' were intriguing. I had a few ideas of my own.

Some people in Skyrim were due to be put in their place, not simply killed brutally, and some, I had a high enough view of to give the kindness of changing them.

Whether Harkon would agree with me mattered not. I would not kill those I would rather see serve me, nor would I destroy those that would make an exceptional member of the new court of Skyrim.

Alright, there we go. I must admit, I had no idea I was going down this road on a plotline, but I though, HEY WHY NOT!? :D

Let me know what you thought and if there's anything specific you want me to slip in anywhere. :D


	11. Chapter 11

**OK, I know it's been a while. There was some.. issues. But here you go. Enjoy. :D**

Seeing their faces was amusement enough for only a moment before business had to be sorted about the residents of Solitude that had been allowed to live on their own request that they would be turned to be like us. Each showed a different emotion on their faces that were simply too amusing to not comment on.

"Oh come now. Surely you should be happy you now have more freedom without these feeble men and women to govern over your every move now?" No response other than one of them looking up at me as I spoke, her eyes showing a fire that burned with hatred. An Altmer woman, oh so clearly related to the woman I'd killed earlier and this one just wouldn't look away, though her eyes flicked to my teeth as I grinned at her. "Something to say? Do tell."

The woman looked around the room for a moment, her eyes lingering on each vampire before her eyes rested on Sybille, her emotions flaring wildly. She wasn't even trying to control herself. Admirable, but would ultimately get her killed if she decided to pursue the wrong course of action. I was eager to find out what she had to say to my old friend. "You may look different, but you cannot fool me Sybille Stentor. I knew there was something off about you, yet the court saw you as perfectly trustworthy for years. Fancy that. How many people did you have to go through to get your position, huh? Most people were complaining about Erikur or Bryling having killed or stolen to receive their posts, but it was all you. All the nobles killed. Am I right? Tell me-!"

Sybille's hand was around her throat in less than a second, not quite enough to choke her too much, but not loose enough that it was simply pointless, as the noble vampire grinned maliciously, her words rolling off her tongue with a honey to rival sweetrolls. "Very clever, Taarie, my dear. Very clever, indeed. But your precious High King and Queen and everyone that came into contact with me here, saw only what I wanted them to see…" Sybille's nails dug a little into the pale Altmer's neck and I saw my friend lick her lips at both the sight and smell, but I didn't want the woman killed just yet. She might prove useful. At least for now.

"Sybille." A moment of silence as Sybille stared hard at 'Taarie' before sighing and standing back, returning to her spot.

"As you wish… Your Majesty." The slight hint of a smile graced her lips as she looked at me told me she was taunting. She received a growl from my own throat in response.

I cast a glance at Harkon who now sat in the throne- HIS throne- and grinned at him. He returned my smile and held up his hand in a gesture for me to proceed.

Turning back to the Altmer, who's anger was now singularly aimed at me. Hm.

"You have more to say, 'Taarie'?" Holding my hand up to her, I stepped back a little, to offer her the floor. "Take the stage, if you wish."

Her anger only flared and, by Bal, she was raging so much, she might as well have spontaneously combusted on the spot.

Alternatively, her choice in that moment was to leap forward, in my direction, her hands swiping for my throat, hair, heart, anything that she might have reached, had I not already anticipated her attack and swerved to the right and around her, swiping a leg out to knock her to the ground and pulling my bow over to my front, an ordinary iron arrow in my hand and notched in the bow I trained on her head as she turned to face me, now on her hands and knees.

The woman almost looked feral as she growled at me.

"Tell me why should I spare your life? Give me one reason and I will lower my bow." I sensed the confusion of every vampire in the room blast in my direction, but ignored it in favour of watching the elven woman move through a flurry of thoughts and emotions, though when she only lighted on loss, resignation and sorrow, I found that I might regret not killing her as soon as I smelled her in the room earlier in the hour. "Pity. That fire could have been useful. Do you have any last words?"

She only sighed and lifted her head. "You killed my sister, leech. I hope you can live with the blood on your hands."

Hm. "Sentiment. Pathetic." Loosening my grip on the arrow, I watched her body fall to the ground and turned to Harkon, bored of the day already. I had hoped for better last words from someone so fiery. "May I?" Gesturing to the remaining humans, who were making every vampire in the room hungry again, I made my request obvious to my husband, who's eyes flashed red as he nodded.

Bloodying my hands again felt euphoric as my fingers tore into the chest of Solitude's Blacksmith, the man's body shuddering as I did so. Pulling the man closer to me, I hissed into his ear. "Die, knowing your world will crumble and fall around your rotting corpse, your forged armor and weapons having done nothing to help a one sided war." I tightened my grasp, only slightly and had to hold back the groan that threatened me as he man's body fell limp around my hand.

I felt the slight movement in the air as one of my own moved towards me. Only a step, but I could all but taste the hunger they all felt, despite the meal they'd each indulged in outside.

I tore my hand out of the Blacksmith's chest and turned towards the movement, finding Sera stood, ready to tear into the citizens.

I found I was getting rather sick of the girl trying to test my patience, though she backed down very quickly at the growl the emanated from my throat. I watched her gaze flick to my hand. Her eyes widening as she watched the Blacksmith's heart thump it's last before laying still in my palm.

The girl looked back to my eyes and stepped back into place.

One day soon, she will learn never to test me.

"Your time will come girl. You will learn your place or you will die. In that, you can trust."

Turning back to the matter at hand, I moved to the next in line of our supposed recruits, only finding an old man stood, stubbornly watching my eyes. It took a moment to think about it, but reaching out to snap his neck may have been one of the least satisfying things I'd done that day, despite having the pleasure of watching his body crumble to the ground.

Next, was a Redguard. Lithe. White hair. Didn't look very familiar to me. Then again, paying attention to names wasn't on the top of my to-do list while in Solitude.

"Who might you be?" The look on the man's face might have been comical if it hadn't been aimed at myself.

"Beautiful lady, you have the good fortune to address Fihada, greatest archer in Skyrim. At your service, ma'am." Trying to flirt, clearly. A second later and Harkon was by my side, forcing Fihada to take a step back into the line he'd so clearly deserted when I'd addressed him in the first place. This should be good.

Watching my husband tug slightly on the man's tunic and circling around him like a hawk would It's prey was amusing. I could feel the fear growing ever so slowly in the Redguard man.

"Should I bring you the glory of becoming one of us, what, exactly would you ask in return?" An odd question for him to ask, but he was apparently the easier to talk to. Of the two of us. And it took Fihada a moment, but his eyes rested on my person once again. That smirk that fell on his features showed trouble for him in the next few seconds made it impossible not to smirk back at him.

"Well, a night with your wench…" Harkons hand was around his neck immediately, lifting him off the ground, his other hand reaching out to his side.

"Give me an arrow, Lina." I handed him one without question, eager to see how this would play out. Harkon took it, still holding the Redguard in the air and plunged it into the man's chest, right next to where his heart would be, before dropping him at his feet. My husbands shadow fell over Fihada and I watched, amused, as the man I fell in love with knelt, and whispered to the man.

"Others may fear her more than me for wrath and anger, but in such matters as you call my wife, queen and world a wench. Well…" Harkon twisted the arrow he'd left in the archers chest, listening to the man try and grasp the tiles on the floor and fail miserably. "… Let us simply say that death should be the least of your worries. So now you will lie here, bleed out and suffer until your heart almost stops beating. And then, I shall tear it from your chest. Slowly, so that you can feel every moment of your death…"

The last in our small line of citizens was a girl. Young. Dark hair.

"A pretty thing, aren't you? What is your name, girl and what do you do?" Tipping her head from side to side, I found that she had no scars and no wrinkles to her. It was likely she'd never even been out of the city at all from the looks of her.

"M-my n-name is Erdi, m-my lady. I'm a m-maid here at the p-palace." After a moment, she looked up at me. I could see the fear in her eyes, but there was more to this girl that first meets the eye. That much I had to look a little deeper for.

"Tell me, Erdi. You know what we are, what do you think of that?" She seemed so very confused. Perhaps she was afraid I'd kill her with the wrong answer. "Do not be afraid. I think you'd make an interesting addition to our… merry band of heathens. Speak your mind. Please."

"I…" Her eyes flicked around the room, momentarily lighting on the bodies before flicking back to me as she sighed, stood up straight and spoke. "I think it's rather marvellous that someone dared move against the chaos currently reigning."

There was a shift in emotion in the room, but it was irrelevant. This girl, however…

"And your town mates. What about them?" I had to gesture to the four dead bodies to show my point. Erdi's face only changed slightly when she looked upon Taarie's.

"They dared challenge you and deserved what they received." Well…

My smile was genuine and, seeing the determination in Erdi's mind, I made up my own, taking hold of the girls shoulder and tipping my own head slightly, making ready to slide my teeth into her neck and make a start in raising our army, ready for the war on Tamriel.

**OK, there we go. Let me know of any thoughts or ideas for the future and what-not. Always happy to include new things. :D**


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